Hillary off to Africa to push stability, trade

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WASHINGTON, Aug 4 (AFP): US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was en route to Africa Tuesday for a wide-ranging trip starting in Kenya, where she will seek action to stabilise neighbouring Somalia and push for free trade with the continent.
The seven-nation, 11-day trip is to be Clinton's longest since she became the top US diplomat six months ago and her first to sub-Saharan Africa, where some had feared the continent was not an early priority for the administration.
The State Department has underlined that her visit, which comes just three weeks after President Barack Obama visited the continent, is the earliest trip by a secretary of state to Africa of any administration.
Clinton will seek to build ties with three African powers-Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa.